Photos of the original white Hexamid Solo Tent on the Continental Divide Trail in 2009:

Zpacks™ Hexamid Solo Tent

Ordering:

Shelters are made to order and are currently shipping in about one week.
There may also be lightly used gear in our Bargain
Bin!

Hexamid Solo Tent - $399
(Removeable floor sold separately)
Color:
This item has been replaced by the Plexamid Tent.
It has a more space, and a sewn in floor at the same weight.

Description:

The Hexamid Solo is a six sided pyramid style tent for an average size solo
hiker. It has fully enclosed screen, a detachable bathtub floor or poncho for
versatility (sold separately), and storm doors for 360° rain protection.

Features:

Sets up with just one trekking pole or walking stick adjusted to around 48 inches (122 cm), and a minimum of six stakes.
Eight stakes are recommended.

Ample space for one average size person plus gear. The tent is long enough
for an average size person to fully stretch out their arms and legs, and tall enough to sit upright.

A pair of storm doors protect the front of the tent from rain spray.
The doors overlap in front, you never have to worry about a broken
zipper. They clip down to the front center guy line, or roll up out of the way.
Leave one or both doors open for air flow when the weather allows it.
You can also use the doors for vestibule space.

Great ventilation, and a great view through the large screen entryway.
6" (15 cm) of screen around the perimeter allows air flow. The
bathtub floor is set back from the screen walls. You can leave both
storm doors open in the rain for air flow, unless spray is blowing
directly at the front of the tent.

Our Hexamid tents are unique in that they have a fully enclosed screen floor
which keeps 100% of insects, spiders, ticks, etc out!

You will need a separate waterproof bathtub floor on the inside, on top
of the screen, just like sleeping under a tarp.
Keeping it separate from the tent offers the following advantages:

Our
Bathtub Floor works great, but alternatively you can
use a Poncho
to double as rain gear, a Bivy,
or inexpensive material like
Tyvek to save on cost.

On nice nights you can take your separate floor out and sleep under the stars or on the ground under a shelter.

If rain is blowing hard at one side of the tent, you can
fold or shift your floor away from
any spray. Rain spray or condensation runs harmlessly out the
screen floor.

You can set your wet shoes, wet pack, and clothes on the
screen, while keeping your bathtub floor dry.

You can take out your bathtub floor to dry the tent off
faster. If the tent is wet you can pack your dry floor separate.

Normally the floor stays clipped in place and packs
up with the tent. You don't ever have to take it out except when
you want to!

Each inside corner of the tent has a loop and clip for attaching your
bathtub floor. The peak also has a loop on the inside for hanging a flashlight or stuff sack.

All of our tents do pretty well in the wind. The material can handle
high wind loads. As long as your stakes stay in the ground (use rocks if
available) your tent will stay standing. Dyneema Composite Fabric is not a particularly
noisy fabric, however almost any tent will make a little noise in the
wind. Ear plugs are not a bad idea for windy nights.

DCF is semi-transparent. In bright sunlight you can see a fuzzy
silhouette of a person sitting inside the tent. You cannot see any
details and it has a suitable amount of privacy for changing clothes
etc. In lower light (such as in the evening or at night) you cannot see
through at all. We also have thicker, darker material available as an
upgrade below.

One nice thing about Dyneema Composite Fabric is you can also see the outlines of
trees and your surroundings for a more connected outdoor experience.

The expected life span of this shelter is at least one
full 2500+ mile thru hike, or many years of casual use with some
care.

All Zpacks gear has a one year warranty against defects in
materials or workmanship. Please see our
return / warranty policy.

Construction:

Our tents are made from .51 oz/sqyd (17.4 g/m²) Dyneema Composite
Fabric. DCF has several advantages over other materials:

DCF has a very high strength to weight ratio. The
material can handle high wind force and does not tear easily.

DCF is inherently waterproof. There is no DWR to worry about
wearing out.

DCF is not coated with any chemicals. It is PFC free.

DCF is made from Dyneema threads which do not
stretch. The tent stays taut all night. Nylon material by
comparison can stretch and sag, especially if it gets wet.

Tape sticks well to it. Any damage can easily be fixed in
the field with our
DCF Repair Tape.

The seams are stitched and then taped taped water tight. The tie
outs have bonded reinforcements for high strength. No seam sealing necessary!

This tent has fully enclosed .7 oz/sqyd (24 g/m²) insect screen. The holes in this screen
are super tiny, even the smallest insects cannot get through. Our tent
screen is about 30% lighter than comparable Noseeum screen with no
noticeable decrease in durability. The screen floor holds up
surprisingly well. As long as you are a little careful to move pointy
things from your tent site you are unlikely to get any damage. If it did
get a puncture it would be under your solid bathtub floor where it
wouldn't affect the performance of the tent.

The separate (optional) bathtub floor is made from 1.0 oz/sqyd DCF. This material weight is more than twice as thick as the canopy
material and is more resistant to abrasion and punctures. As with all
DCF it is easy to patch with tape.

Bright Yellow 1.25 mm Spectra Z-Line cord is included for guy lines
(uncut). This cord is very strong, tangle resistant, and doesn't stretch
so it gives you a tight pitch. Yellow is easy to see day or night. We
recommend fixed length guy lines for the easiest set up with no knots or
adjustment necessary. Some customers choose to add
Linelocs or different
cord.

Tent Dimensions:

Peak Height: 47 inches (119 cm)

Length: 9 feet (2.75 meters)

Width at center of screen floor: 54 inches (137 cm)

Width at ends of screen floor: 30 inches (76 cm)

Entryway Height: 29 inches (74 cm)

Vestibule Depth: About 12 inches (30 cm)

Floor Dimensions (Assuming a Solo Bathtub Floor is used):

Width at center: 32 inches (81 cm)

Width at ends: 24 inches (61 cm)

Length: 7 feet (2.13 m)

Bathtub wall height: 5-6 inches (15 cm)

Note that you also have additional space around the perimeter of the
bathtub floor for gear.

The total weight for the tent w/ floor is 14.6 ounces (414 grams).
Upgrading to thicker Spruce or Camo material adds weight as
described below.

8 Stakes are required but are not included. We have a variety of
Ultralight Stakes to choose from.

Additional Material Choices:

A Solplex Tent in Green .74 oz:

.74 oz/sqyd Spruce Green Dyneema Composite Fabric

The default tent material is .51 oz/sqyd Dyneema Composite Fabric. This material has proven to be plenty
strong enough to handle high winds, and your tent will normally not be subject
to abrasion or punctures. If it does get damaged (for example by a falling
branch or sparks), the material is very easy to
patch in the field with our Repair Tape.

Some people prefer to upgrade to heavier .74 oz/sqyd DCF for added peace of
mind. My own opinion is this material is not necessary, but it also does not
hurt other than a small weight increase. It adds around
1.5 ounces (45 grams) to the
weight. We have it in dark green as shown. It is a little bit less transparent
than the thinner material.

The detachable bathtub floor is always made from black 1.0 oz/sqyd DCF which is
thicker and stronger than the tarp material.

A Duplex Tent in Camo .67 oz:
View from Inside the tent:

.67 oz/sqyd Camo Dyneema Composite Fabric

This material is the same
strength as .51 oz/sqyd except it has an additional layer with a camo
pattern laminated in. It blends in to nature well. This material is darker and
less transparent than the default, and offers a little
more privacy.

DCF has a bit of a sheen to it when it is new, but it dulls down
significantly with some use.

This material is more expensive. It adds around 1 ounce (28
grams) to the weight.

Back Story:

The Hexamid Solo was our very first tent. I initially designed it as a super
minimalist shelter for use on my 2009 Continental Divide Trail thru-hike.
The trip took 154 days traveling roughly 2,651 miles through the Rocky
Mountains. Over the course of the trip the tent went through just about
every type of weather, from gusting wind, to rain storms, snow
storms, sub freezing temperatures, etc. I hiked the first half of the trip
by myself, the second half with my wife Sheryl. We used the same
solo tent for the whole trip since it was the only design we had at the time. The Hexamid Solo
was comfortable for me at 5' 9" tall, but it was a real squeeze for the two of
us. We used a wide sheet of Tyvek for our floor to max out the available space. The tent held up really
well over our five month trip. We didn't get any
punctures or tears, and didn't have to do any repairs.

If we were to do the CDT again as a couple we would probably opt for the Duplex
tent. If I were to do it again alone I would either use the Hexamid Solo or an
Altaplex. (Trip report / Gear list)

This tent has had several revisions since it was first released. We started
taping the seams on all our shelters in 2012. We switched from a Beak to Storm
doors in 2015.

Reviews and Customer Testimonials:

Please email us with feedback (good or bad) if you have any!

Anish set a new PCT Speed Record in 2013 at
61 days and 17 hours using our Hexamid Solo tent! Her tent was
her favorite piece of gear. Check out her
review!
*Anish bought her tent at full price and was not sponsored or
under any obligation to review it.

"My Zpacks Hexamid gave me a level of comfort and peace of mind
which belied it's uber light weight. On the 2012 Tour Divide I could end
the long days of riding guaranteed of a good nights sleep, whether in the
snow and bear infested forests of Canada and Montana or the bug riddled
desert of New Mexico. Without a doubt it played a big part in my recovery
and helped me push to the win." -Ollie Whalley, 2012 Tour Divide Winner

"Joe, I just wanted to let you know that my Hexamid performed
beyond my expectations. Not once during my hike on the
Appalachian Trail did I end up wet, nor did the tent sustain
any sort of damage." -Nathan S.

"We are absolutely, 100%
convinced we have the best 2-person tent on the trail, even if
the Hexamid solo is designed for 1-person. You should see the
looks of disbelief when other hikers see that there are TWO of
us in there on full-length Thermarests, with all our packs and
gear in there. Their faces turn from disbelief to shock and
jealousy when we tell them the weight!" -Boston and Cubby, PCT 2010

"I just wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know that I
finished the PCT on September 10th 2010 and the Hexamid Solo
Tent preformed extremely well in all elements. I am extremely
happy with the tent and thank you again for helping me out with
my situation back in June." -Shane S.

"I just wanted
to say that I LOVE this tent. But after two thru-hikes and a
few weekend hikes mine is starting to show some wear and tear
which is expected. So I am buying another one. Doing the Hayduke trail and perhaps the Colorado trail this summer.
Thanks again for making awesome gear." -Luke W.

"I used my Hexamid for the first time last weekend, and it
worked great through an October snow storm. Thanks for making
such great gear. I am really excited to use my Hexamid for my
AT thru-hike this spring!" -Caleb M.

"My Hexamid Solo is still in
great shape after three thru-hikes, the Appalachian
Trail, Te Araroa, and Continential Divide Trail! I'm still
using it here on short hikes in Hawaii." -Dave "Freebird" Osborn

"I just got back from completing the John
Muir Trail and I've gotta say, great work on the Hexamid. It's
just perfect ... in a lot of ways. I got a lot of
questions/people interested about it so you might see more
orders coming your way."
Photo from Guitar Lake -Matt B.

"My year-old Hexamid Solo has successfully thru-hiked the
Florida Trail and the Continental Divide Trail this year with
me. At least 100 individual nights were spent under the Dyneema
Composite Fabric this past year, and it has held up magnificently
throughout. I highly recommend Zpacks, not only for the
excellent products, but also the excellent service if needed
after the fact. After all, who better to help long-distance
travelers than people who have been there?" -Rob F.

"Thanks again Joe and since I don't often get a chance to say it that often, the tent is wonderful.
I hiked the CDT with it and also the AZT this year before I started the PCT.
I've used it in all conditions and for the weight and size it holds up amazingly.
Thanks for the work you guys do on these tents." -Alex C.

"I took my Hexamid Solo to Torres Del Paine and Los Glaciares National Park in Patagonia in March.
The area is notorious for high winds. I didn't see any other lightweight tents.
Everyone had 4 season, heavy duty tents. I had 3 very windy nights and the tent held up well.
I am thinking about selling this one and buying one of your bigger models this summer.
It rained a lot while I was there and I was constantly waking up to make sure all of my gear was within the bathtub floor.
A little more room would have made it more comfortable in the rain. I do like the ventilation with the Hexamid.
On a recent Florida Trail trip I had relatively high humidity with very little
wind and had absolutely no condensation in my tent. I also had no condensation issues during my entire 4 weeks South America,
while other hikers struggled with moisture inside their tents." -Doug K.

"I took the tent out night before last and spent the night in it. It ended up being a major thunderstorm with high winds that night and let me tell you, the tent did absolutely great!
I need to play with pitching it a little, as I have only done it once now. I am extremely happy with all of your fine products and look forward to using them a lot. It was definately well worth the wait." -Robert C.

"I love your company and products. I thru hiked the AT in 2014 using your Hexamid Solo tent, and raved about it the entire trip! As an older hiker, (55), I especially appreciate the weight savings of your performance gear. I plan to complete the triple crown in the next few years, along with some other long hikes." -Thomas T.

"I’m used to mainstream feestanding tents and was new to Dyneema fabric and a frameless design.
I found the Zpacks Hexamid Solo Tent with tub in my search for the lightest option available on the market.
At around a pound it was the clear winner but I was skeptical about a single carbon pole holding this
thing up and the exposure around the bottom.
On a recent hike through the Haleakala Crater at 10,00 feet on Maui your little tent was put through the test of tests.
Camping that night I experiences 50 mile an hour winds and sheet rain pounding the tent to the point that it was under
fire like a parachute on D-day. The guy lines were on tight, stakes firmly planted, but I was expecting it to last a few
minutes when the onslaught started. To my surprise the tent lasted 14 hour of this bombardment that night without a single tear,
leak or collapse. even with the exposed area between the tent and the ground, no water entered from the horizontal 50 mile rain,
and neither did the wind, as I made a meal on my stove without needing my wind shield.
The following night was much of the same, but this time I knew I would be kept safe and dry.
It survived handsomely. I’m certain my MSR Hubba would have been torn to shreds enduring this treachery.
You made a believer out of me. Forgive my skepticism and thanks for the great product,
it is a great testament to the Dyneema fabric and your high quality manufacturing processes." -Luke K.

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